By Lehlohonolo Lehana.
Team South Africa will be gunning for more medals on Monday, on the third day of competition at the Olympic Games in Paris.
Swimmers Pieter Coetze (100m backstroke, 9.19pm) and Tatjana Smith (9.25pm) will be among the podium favourites in the evening session in the swimming pool.
Smith was fastest in the 100m breaststroke semifinals on Sunday night, stopping the clock in a season’s best of 1:05.00.
I’m just so grateful swimming to be good times again,” Smith said. “I haven’t been close to my time from Tokyo (1:04.82), so to be swimming my best times since then is an amazing feeling. I’m just happy to be enjoying every race and it doesn’t matter what times I do put up. It’s about the experience and how happy I am to be here doing what I’m doing.”
While Coetze was third quickest in the 100m backstroke semifinals in 52.63 seconds, breaking his own African record of 52.78.
Aimee Canny was 12th overall in 1:57.34 in the 200m freestyle semifinals, falling short of a spot in the final.
Meanwhile mountain bike cyclist Alan Hatherly is set to line up among the medal favourites in the men’s cross country race on Monday afternoon (2.10pm).
Elsewhere, on the hockey field, the SA men’s team drew 2-2 against Great Britain in their second pool match and the women’s side lost 2-1 in their opening game, while fencer Harry Saner was eliminated in the opening round of the men’s individual epee competition.